An overseas Filipino worker (OFW) implicated on the killing of a fellow OFW in Saudi Arabia sometime in July of last year, conveyed to an official of Migrante-Middle East, a migrant rights group, that he has been 'heavily beaten' inside his cell in a police station during investigation.
John Leonard Monterona, Migrante-Middle East regional coordinator, said OFW Edgar Maligaya, 38 years old, from Batangas province, claimed that he had been beaten by police authorities at the Olaya Police station, Olaya district, Riyadh.
"OFW Maligaya was implicated on the 'mysterious' death of a fellow OFW driver named Andy Miclat Dimakali sometime in July based on the initial finding that his text message last appeared to the victim's mobile phone on the day OFW Dimacali's reported killing," Monterona added.
Migrante-Middle East, citing a letter dated June 1, 2011 from the PH embassy, the Death Notification issued by the Saudi Ministry of Health on July 20, 2011 submitted to the embassy, stated that "OFW Dimacali died outside the hospital with wounds in the head, cracked ribs, and was bleeding from the nose."
"The family of OFW Dimacali is still awaiting the repatriation of his remains after being informed by the DFA only last month about his death. The Dimacali family believed there is foul play surrounding the death of their kin and that OFW Edgar Maligaya is not involved in the crime," Monterona added.
Monterona said he is closely following Dimacali's 'mysterious' death with the PH embassy in Riyadh and had asked a copy of the police report as per the family's request. The embassy replied that the Olaya Police station and the Prosecutor's office declined to provide a copy of the police report. "The document in question is confidential in nature and, as such, could not be provided," the embassy stated on its letter dated June 1, 2011.
"As the content of the police report on the killing of OFW Dimacali is not bared, we have reasons to suspect that there is something 'wrong' and needs to be kept away from the family of the OFW victim," Monterona added.
Monterona said studying the facts and information gathered by his group, he believed OFW Edgar Maligaya is a 'fall guy', wrongly implicated and accused on the killing of OFW Dimacali.
Monterona added, in regards to the beating incident, the PH embassy on its letter dated 14 June 2011 stated it has already sent a Note Verbal to the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs and letters to the Saudi authorities condemning the act of the police authorities.
"This matter must be thoroughly investigated by the PH embassy," Monterona concluded.
No comments:
Post a Comment